The Government is still intent on trying to control Christchurch’s future from the Beehive, Green Party Christchurch spokesperson Eugenie Sage said today. The Green Party today responded to the announcement of new power structures for Canterbury’s recovery from the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes. 

Unless the Government reviews its processes for valuing high country pastoral lease land, it will continue to give away millions of dollars to private interests that should be going to the New Zealand public, the Green Party said today. This follows analysis from Lincoln University researchers showing that farmers are making huge profits from on-selling Crown land that is sold to them under the tenure review process - land that they had previously leased from the Crown. Green Party conservation...

Further falls overnight in dairy auction prices have highlighted the failure of National’s economic strategy, the Green Party said today. Dairy prices fell a further 11 percent overnight, reaching their lowest point in six years at US$2054 a tonne. Increasing supply suggests there could be more bad news to come. “National has failed to build a strong, resilient export sector,” said Green Party Co-leader James Shaw. “The simplification of our export economy to a few basic commodity exports like milk...

The Green Party is asking Parliament’s Justice and Electoral Select Committee to initiate an inquiry into equality of access to justice.

The National Government shouldn’t drag New Zealand backwards by replacing its climate friendly electric trains with carbon-polluting diesel trains, the Green Party said today. “We are calling on the National Government to rule out replacing KiwiRail’s electric trains with diesel trains,” said Green Party transport spokesperson Julie Anne Genter. Today, Ms Genter, the RMTU, and Generation Zero have gathered near Parliament to tell National not to replace our electric train fleet with diesel trains. The group will then march backwards...

New Zealand is starting from behind as it is poised to take up the presidency of the UN Security Council by failing to show leadership on one of the most significant international security issues of the day, said the Green Party today.

The Green Party has chosen to allow a split vote on today’s third reading of the Harmful Digital Communications Bill.

The National Government is spending its Land Transport Fund primarily on carbon-polluting transport infrastructure, rather than building a clean, balanced and efficient system for the 21st century, the Green Party said today. “The National Government could use the Land Transport Fund future-proof our transport system. Instead, National has chosen to continue spending over a billion dollars per year on a few carbon-polluting motorways that haven’t even passed a business case test,” said Green Party transport spokesperson Julie Anne Genter.  ...

John Key must guarantee any state houses sold to local or overseas buyers for social housing are offered back to the Government first in the event they’re sold in the future, the Green Party said today. The National Government plans to sell thousands of state houses to social housing providers by 2017, and Horizon Housing, a not-for-profit charity based on Australia's Gold Coast, has expressed interest in buying more than 400 of them.

New Zealand must condemn Israel’s attempt to stop the humanitarian flotilla reaching Gaza and the prolonged, illegal blockade of Gaza by Israel, the Green Party said today.